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Rhode Island man to plead guilty to setting fire to Black church

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Rhode Island man to plead guilty to setting fire to Black church



Kevin Colantonio, 35, of North Providence, R.I., was arrested a few days after the fire at Shiloh Gospel Temple. He is expected to admit to targeting the church because of its mostly Black membership.

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PROVIDENCE, R. I. – A Rhode Island man has agreed to plead guilty to charges that he set fire to a North Providence church earlier this year, targeting it because of its mostly Black membership, according to court documents.

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Kevin Colantonio of North Providence was arrested a few days after the early morning fire Feb. 11 at Shiloh Gospel Temple, a Pentecostal church.

He admitted to buying a Bic lighter and gasoline at a nearby Cumberland Farms shortly before midnight, pouring the gasoline around the outside of the church and igniting it, according to a plea agreement filed Friday in U.S. District Court, Providence.

Colantonio’s actions caused church services to be cancelled, according to court records, preventing its congregants from their free exercise of religion. He stipulated he chose the church because of actual or perceived color, race, religion, national origin or ethnicity of its members.

Surveillance video, information from witnesses and a bank card helped lead police to Colantonio. Investigators said they found racist writings in Colantonio’s apartment. Prosecutors read from one of them during Colantonio’s initial court appearance four days after the fire. It said: “Hunt them down. Gun everyone who isn’t white.”

Colantonio has also agreed to plead guilty to charges that he threw feces and urine at two prison guards who were delivering his breakfast on March 4 at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Central Falls, court papers show.

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Colantonio was charged with damage to a religious property, malicious damage by means of fire and two counts of assault of a federal officer. The first two counts carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The second count requires a minimum sentence of five years.

The arson unnerved the church community, which has about 100 members, and drew intense police scrutiny. Pastor Eric Perry said the fire could have been fatal if the church had been holding a service when it was set.



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CRMC asks RI Superior Court to force Quidnessett Country Club to take down rock wall

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CRMC asks RI Superior Court to force Quidnessett Country Club to take down rock wall


The Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) filed a counterclaim against Quidnessett Country Club in Providence County Superior Court Tuesday. It wants a judge to force the North Kingstown country club to remove the 600-foot stone wall built without permission roughly three years ago.



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Why a Taylor Swift wedding might shut down Westerly streets

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Why a Taylor Swift wedding might shut down Westerly streets


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  • The potential wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, presents a significant logistical challenge.
  • Transporting celebrity guests would likely occur in three phases: from airports, to wedding events, and back to airports.
  • A large, out-of-state limousine company would probably be needed to handle the transportation for the high-profile event.
  • Using large coach buses would be necessary to move guests to wedding activities and ease traffic in the small village.

As Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce eye possibly getting married at her Watch Hill, Rhode Island, mansion, The Providence Journal is surveying various wedding vendors about what it would take for the Ocean State to host a wedding befitting the most popular woman in the world.

Imagine a crowd of A-list celebrities descending on the village of Watch Hill in Westerly this summer to attend the wedding of mega celebrity Taylor Swift and football star Travis Kelce.

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To Chuck O’Koomian, who owns Airline Express Limousine and Car Service with his wife Ginny Cauley, it’s like a scene out of a horror movie.

“It’s gonna be a logistical nightmare,” O’Koomian told The Providence Journal.

How will guests arrive at Taylor Swift’s wedding in Westerly?

While Swift has not announced when or where her wedding will be, O’Koomian talked about what would be involved in getting a large celebrity crowd to the wedding, if it were held at her Bluff Avenue mansion, the nearby Ocean House resort or the Watch Hill Chapel, where Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo tied the know with football player Christian McCaffrey in 2024.

O’Koomian, who has provided transportation for comedian Jay Leno, who has a home in Newport, said there would be three distinct phases of ground transportation:

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  1. Getting people from airports to their hotels
  2. Getting people from their hotels to the wedding activities
  3. Getting them back to the airports

The middle phase, delivering people to wedding activities, very well may not be just a one-day affair. Many say Swift won’t have a wedding day; they’re expecting a wedding week.

While some guests, especially those in New York or Connecticut, would probably just have their drivers bring them to Westerly, others would fly in by private jets, probably landing at Westerly State Airport or Quonset State Airport, whose military runway is long enough to handle larger jets. From there, guests would need a ride to where they are staying.

What Westerly residents have to say

Folks in Westerly have surmised that, even if it’s not the site of the ceremony or reception, the Ocean House, along with its sister property the Weekapaug Inn, plus several rented, private mansions would be needed to accommodate guests.

O’Koomian expects that a large limousine company – such as Boston Corporate Coach or Carey Limousine, in Massachusetts, or Hy’s Limousine, in Connecticut – with more than 120 cars each, would get the contract to serve Taylor Swift’s wedding. “There’s not even 120 cars in Rhode Island, all the companies combined,” he said, adding that, as a subcontractor, he would hope to get a piece of the business.

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Could a fleet of private cars filled with stars snarl traffic in Westerly?

This first phase of local transportation would involve many trips of smaller parties. “They may come in two, three, four at a time,” he said.

While that is suitable for limousine service, getting from hotels to the ceremony, reception and other events, would require a different strategy for that second phase. “It’s like they’re transporting a football team,” he said.

That would mean “coaches,” the upscale version of buses. They would ease the traffic burden that would be created by limousines ferrying some 300 wedding guests around the tiny village of Watch Hill.

“It’s gonna take a lot of coordination if it’s Westerly,” O’Koomian said. “They’re going to have to shut down half the city. Police would have to shut down streets.”



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Rhode Island man crashes into house in Raynham after apparent medical episode

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Rhode Island man crashes into house in Raynham after apparent medical episode


A car crashed into a home in Raynham Tuesday afternoon.

Police said they responded to a report for a vehicle that crashed into a home shortly before 1 p.m. on Broadway Street.

Officers at the scene said they found a sedan that had crashed into the lower brick portion of the home.

Investigators said a man from Rhode Island appeared to suffer from a medical episode before leaving the roadway and crashing into the home.

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Police said the driver suffered non life-threatening injuries. He was transported to Boston Medical Center – South in Brockton.

Officers said the home was empty at the time of the crash.

The Raynham Building Department responded to assess the home for structural damage.

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The crash is under investigation.



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